Chapter 9: Eating Disorders and Obesity

anorexia nervosa

intense fear of gaining weight or becoming “fat” coupled with refusal to maintain adequate nutrition with severe loss of body weight

binge

an out-of-control consumption of an amount of food that is far greater than what most people would eat in the same amount of time and under the same circumstances

binge-eating disorder (BED)

distinct from nonpurging bulimia nervosa, whereby binging is not accompanied by an inappropriate compensatory behavior to limit weight gain

body mass index (BMI)

an estimation of total body fat calculated as body weight (in kilograms) divided by height (in meters) squared

bulimia nervosa

frequent occurrence of binge-eating episodes accompanied by a sense of loss of control over eating and recurrent inappropriate behavior such as purging or excessive exercise to prevent weight gain

eating disorders

disorders of food ingestion, regurgitation, or attitude that affect health and well-being, such as anorexia, bulimia, or binge eating

ghrelin

a hormone that is produced by the stomach; it stimulates appetite

hypothalamus

key structure at the base of the brain; important in emotion and motivation

leptin

a hormone produced by fat cells that acts to reduce food intake

negative affect

the experience of an emotional state characterized by negative emotions; such negative emotions might include anger, anxiety, irritability, and sadness

obesity

the condition of having elevated fat masses in the body; _____ is defined as having a BMI of 30 or higher

perfectionism

the need to get things exactly right; a personality trait that may increase the risk for development of eating disorders, perhaps because _____ people may be more likely to idealize thinness

purge

the removal of food from the body by such means as self-induced vomiting or misuse of laxatives, diuretics, and enemas

randomized controlled trials

a _____ involves a specific treatment group (the group the researchers are most interested in) as well as a control treatment group (against which the treatment group will be compared); participants have an equal chance of being placed in either group because placement is determined randomly

serotonin

a neurotransmitter from the indolamine class that is synthesized from the amino acid tryptophan; also referred to as 5-HT (5-hydroxytryptamine), this neurotransmitter is thought to be involved in a wide range of psychopathological conditions

set point

the tendency of our bodies to resist efforts to bring about a marked change (increase or decrease) in weight